Kleinlife builds a house: Getting lit

Lighting! Yay!

Kleinlife builds a house: stage of paint

We're finally painting... Which means we are neck deep in the stages paint color acceptance:

1. I have chosen the perfect color swatch!

2. I have calculated how many square feet I need!

3. Paint purchased!

4. Gather supplies

5. Look for supplies I'm missing

6. Eat a cookie

7. Find missing supplies

8. Yay! Time to start painting

9. Remember I forgot something

10. Find supply I forgot.

11. Start cutting in

12. Freak out about how the color looks

13. Keep working on cutting in 

14. Get paint on ceiling

15. Swear

16. Repeat 14-15

17. Really freak out about color

18. Decide to start rolling

19. Continue freak out

20. Realize you have 5 gallons of potentially ugly paint

21. Keep going

22. Think maybe color is okay

23. Nope it's awful... You wasted an entire day on this stupid color

24. Keep going

25. Start thinking it looks okay

26. Almost done

27. Wow. This is the best color ever. I am such a good color picker!

28. Repeat for every room in the house

Hello? Pick up please.

Ah. Parents.  People that have cell phones but apparently find it unnecessary to use them.

ANSWER YOUR TEXT MESSAGES.  NOW.

Kleinlife builds a house: update!

So...I guess it's been a while since we did a house update....

In the past few weeks we have the lot graded, all the concrete work done, the drywall installed, and with a few minor touch ups ready for paint, the sub floor sanded (remember the 12 inches of rain we got without a roof last summer), and the septic system installed.

I dumped all the photos off my phone last week so all I have to show you are these pics of the driveway and front steps I took last night.

So we are practically done.  Only 1,300 things left to do....

sigh. still waiting for the magical house building fairies to show up and finish while we sleep....

kleinlife: camp bode

We celebrated Bode's big day a few days early.

Halloween: the cat's meow

Cora insisted on being a kitty again for Halloween this year...which of course made Bode a mouse...

sorry, too late to mess with rotating images. :)

Kleinlife builds a house: paint

We have paint!  

Cora was pretty bummed when she realized it wasn't purple.

kleinlife builds a house: how's the house?

By far the most common question we are asked these days....answer..

"it's coming along"

2nd most common question:  So when is it supposed to be done?

answer: uh, probably never. (really)

So, why is it taking so long?  Um, we're building a house.

No really, we aren't "building a house"...as in paying someone else to build us a house....we are actually BUILDING A HOUSE.  

So this means that WE (well mostly andy) are making the calls, hiring the sub contractors, renting the equipment, talking our family into helping us wire the house, and install the everything, we are submitting bills and information to the bank, tracking the finances, picking out the everything, deciding where every outlet and fixture should go, what every light will be look like, how it will function.  We make trips to Menards and Home Depot, and try to pretend like we know what we are doing.

We mess things up and try again.

We try to focus on one project at a time, and also on 20 projects at a time.

And because we still have regular lives of going to work and keeping our kids alive things are taking a while.

So feel free to keep asking, we don't mind.  

But if you are thinking "hmm. gosh I know lots of people that have "built houses" and they seemed to have a timeline and a move in date, and ya know, know what is going on".  You are right.  But typically in addition to having a better sense of their timeline they also have a general contractor.

Oh, and have you met us?  We tend to be particular and perfectionists...which is how we got to this whole building not buying situation to begin with.

So we are working on it.  If you'd ever like to work on it we'd welcome your help....we are typically working every night / weekend except Tuesday and Thursdays.....bring your tools. :)

So to answer your question: How's the house coming along?

It's good.  We are working on finishing up pulling wire....then we'll be on to insulation and sheetrocking.

this is why we can't be friends: what's at steak.

So I sent this image to Andy to explain our difference in steak preference....

he responds:

"I think I'm somewhere right after "wait", but before "what are you doing?"

this is why we can't be friends.

by the way this may seem like "entrapment" fora blog post...but it's really not.  I didn't make him respond stupidly, he could have said "oh, why yes, you are right, medium rare IS best"...but alas, no.

this is why we can't be friends: it's yo birthday...

No, not me...well yes me...but also:

Andy Klein @Andy4Klein

You and the park service have the same birthday!

Kansas ForestService @KSForestService

Happy B-day to @NatlParkService, 99 years old today! #FindYourPark #NPS99 #NatureRx @nature_rx goo.gl/S0uYJX pic.twitter.com/K8xtnc0L7K

If you asked which one he was more excited about there would likely be some serious hesitation, followed by him-hawing, following by stuttering, followed by some confusing justification, followed by a rebuttal.

This is why we can't be friends.

I go to college: first day

First day of a new semester calls for a new mouse pad.  Yea, I'm a little ghetto.  

But I can take notes on it... so it's cool...

I go to college: I like the way you move it

So it's the end of July...aka the time in a college town when leases are turning over and you start to see scenes like this in town....

Yea....of course it'll work to just set your couch on top of everything else you own....

Kleinlife builds a house: lello stripes

Thanks to all who voted on our house color... We actually decided to go with Cora's suggestion of yellow.... And make the garage door striped.  Different is good.

Okay, who are we kidding... We obviously haven't made a decision yet.  Hello, have we met? We won't decide until we absolutely have to. 

kleinlifebuildsahouse: you've been replaced.

Photos of our kids on my phone have been replaced with things like this: 

sigh....are we done yet?

On the go

We've entered the "how did you even get in there?" stage of army crawling...

Kleinlifebuildsahouse: shingles

We woke up today covered in shingles.  Almost....half covered in shingles...

this is why we can't be friends: turtle power

So at the lot tonight we found a turtle in our garage....as any loyal blog reader (so two of you) will remember we have a history with turtles....

meet fernando (also found in our (at the time) garage)

and sherpando

and  orlando

So we find this turtle and move her (I don't know how andy knows it's a girl? but apparently it is?)

out of the garage, yada yada yada.  

We get home tonight and have the following conversation:

Sandy: what would be a good name for a girl turtle that ends in "ando"?

Andy: well they are different kinds of turtles.

Sandy: so that means it's name can't in end "ando"?

Andy: well the turtle tonight was a painted turtle not an ornate box turtle.

Sandy: so that means it's name can't in end "ando"?

Andy: blank stare

this is why we can't be friends.

Kleinlife builds a house: ding ding

So we decided on a fairly simple front door design... Too bad Andy apparently ordered the window on the bottom. Silly Andy. ;)

kleinlifebuildsahouse: what's your favorite color?

Well, the time has come to finally stop procrastinating and choose a house color. So...you are going to need to get right on that.  Like now.

Please vote:
(poll in the right column >>>>> )

1. Dark brown/greige with white or light colored trim.

2. Gray with white trim.

3. Greenish with dark trim

4. Tan with dark trim

5. beigey tan with light trim

kleinlfebuildsahouse: whose side are you on?

Windows all in, fascia and soffit complete...siding going up:

After much debate about stone and look the final siding layout is below...however NOT the final color.  Basically this is just the sample color until we decide on house and trim color... so help us out and leave your suggestions in the comments!!

Klein life builds a house: and then there were windows...

Whoops -- apparently missed the roof post.  But trusses started going up last Tuesday and last night we were happy to discover that the windows had started going in!

It's funny how everything something major happens the house looks and feels completely different...  

We're still debating on the whole indoor plumbing thing as Cora is a big BIG fan of the "purple potty" currently on the lot.  

Kleinlife builds a house: walls are fun

So we've decided our new house will have walls...

The basement walls are done and part of the exterior main floor walls are in.

We had our first family meal in the house... pizza on the living room floor.

 This is the south "wall o'windows"...from left to right kitchen window, dining window, living room window.

 Cora is a big fan of the living room window....perfect height for her to look our and she has informed us she could put her toys in the spaces under the window.

Cora can give you a tour of what each space will be.

 all in all we're all pretty happy with the progress...despite the rain, rain, and more rain.  

Let their be walls

because I earned it.

I've heard you out there, oldest child, whining about how much easier your younger siblings have had it.  blah blah blah, on and on and on.....

You know what I've learned from having more than 1 child?  Oldest children are right...but more importantly the youngest child has earned it..10 time over.

Seriously.

If Bode one day gets a later curfew or gets away with more it is basically reparations for his life as a "non first child"  -- making up for all the pokes, prods, pushes, taking the blanket he wants or the toy he wants, or having to wear what his sister picks out, or getting held by whichever parents she doesn't want holding her.

I should start taking photos and video recordings of Cora attacking the poor little guy so later when she complains about how "easy he has it" I can be like, yes, and this is why: he lived through the trauma of you picking out his outfits and "helping him roll over" and "I touched Bode's eye".

All in all I'd say oldest children are getting off easy.  I actually feel more sad for myself now, because I'm getting an inkling at the obvious trauma I must have endured has a child.  (Shawna, it would be completely appropriate for you to start buying be presents or baking me delicious eateries to make up for said abuse).  

So, perhaps has Bode grows the discipline will relax a bit, or he'll get "his way" more often... but believe me he earned it,,,,,often times the hard way.

#benicetobode

Taking a rest...

Sometimes you just need to rest your head.  I tried this with Andy, but apparently it only works if you are two...otherwise your head is "too heavy".